Featured Research

Psychiatric complications in women with polycystic ovary syndrome most often linked to menstrual irregularities

Date:

March 24, 2014

Source:

Columbia University School of Nursing

Summary:

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormone imbalance that causes infertility, obesity, and excessive facial hair in women, can also lead to severe mental health issues including anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. A study identifies the PCOS complications that may be most responsible for psychiatric problems. While weight gain and unwanted body hair can be distressing, irregular menstrual cycles is the symptom of PCOS most strongly associated with psychiatric problems.

Share This

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormone imbalance that causes infertility, obesity, and excessive facial hair in women, can also lead to severe mental health issues including anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. A study supervised by Columbia University School of Nursing professor Nancy Reame, MSN, PhD, FAAN, and published in the Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, identifies the PCOS complications that may be most responsible for psychiatric problems. While weight gain and unwanted body hair can be distressing, irregular menstrual cycles is the symptom of PCOS most strongly associated with psychiatric problems, the study found.

Related Articles

“We were surprised to find that menstrual abnormalities in women with PCOS was the strongest predictor for mental health issues, particularly when there are so many other symptoms—like beard growth and infertility—that can make a woman feel unfeminine,” says senior author Nancy Reame, the Mary Dickey Lindsay Professor of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at Columbia Nursing. “The study findings suggest that we can’t treat PCOS effectively unless we pay close attention to any signs of mental distress.”

The study evaluated psychological symptoms in 126 women diagnosed with PCOS. Participants completed surveys using a standard tool for evaluating mental health, the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI), and their responses were compared with those of adult women in the general population and of adult women undergoing outpatient psychiatric care. While small, and not a randomized controlled trial, the study offers insight into the psychiatric manifestations of different PCOS symptoms, Reame says. Body hair and menstrual problems most strongly predicted anxiety, while obesity was most strongly associated with hostility, the study found.

In addition, the study found that for all nine mental health disorders measured by the BSI, the women with PCOS had significantly higher levels of psychological distress than the general population. For more than half of those disorders, the women with PCOS had distress levels statistically similar to those of the female psychiatric patients.

“When we compared participants with women in the general population, we found significantly higher scores on all of the symptoms evaluated and on corresponding psychological distress measures, particularly for anxiety, depression, somatization (the conversion of psychological distress to physical symptoms), and interpersonal sensitivity,” says lead author Judy McCook, PhD, RN, professor of nursing at East Tennessee State University.

PCOS is estimated to affect 6 to 17 million women aged 18–44 in the U.S. It is one of the most common causes of infertility. There’s no single test to diagnose PCOS, and there’s no cure. The disorder is typically characterized by an excess production of the hormone testosterone, irregular ovulation, and cysts, or fluid-filled sacs, in the ovaries.

Columbia University School of Nursing. "Psychiatric complications in women with polycystic ovary syndrome most often linked to menstrual irregularities." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 24 March 2014. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140324111308.htm>.

Columbia University School of Nursing. (2014, March 24). Psychiatric complications in women with polycystic ovary syndrome most often linked to menstrual irregularities. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 3, 2015 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140324111308.htm

Columbia University School of Nursing. "Psychiatric complications in women with polycystic ovary syndrome most often linked to menstrual irregularities." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140324111308.htm (accessed March 3, 2015).

More Health & Medicine News

Featured Research

Mar. 3, 2015 — Doctors write millions of prescriptions a year for drugs to calm the behavior of people with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. But non-drug approaches actually work better, and carry ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Briefly counseling college students on the dangers of binge drinking is effective in lowering heavy drinking levels among many students, but only temporarily. Three out of four will be right back ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Limp or firm, your handshake conveys subliminal social cues. Now, research reveals it also transmits chemical signals that could explain why the greeting evolved in the first ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Body mass index in healthy adolescents has a statistically significant association with both systolic blood pressures and diastolic blood pressures, research shows, and it highlights the significance ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Loneliness brought about by the death of a spouse can trigger a wider network of depression-like symptoms, a study has found, but authors suggest that doctors are often too quick to attribute these ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Family Based Interpersonal Psychotherapy (FB-IPT) is more effective in treating preadolescent children with depression compared to child-centered therapy (CCT), a recent study has found. ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Two of the four known groups of human AIDS viruses (HIV-1 groups O and P) have originated in western lowland gorillas, according to new research. The scientists conducted a comprehensive survey of ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Scientists have succeeded in producing cartilage formed from embryonic stem cells that could in future be used to treat the painful joint condition osteoarthritis. With their huge capacity to ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Everyone worries about losing their memory as they grow older—memory loss remains one of the most common complaints of the elderly. But the molecular reasons behind the processes remain unclear, ... full story

Featured Videos

Mom Triumphs Over Tragedy, Helps Other Families

AP (Mar. 3, 2015) — After her son, Dax, died from a rare form of leukemia, Julie Locke decided to give back to the doctors at St. Jude Children&apos;s Research Hospital who tried to save his life. She raised $1.6M to help other patients and their families. (March 3)
Video provided by AP

Woman Convicted of Poisoning Son

AP (Mar. 3, 2015) — A woman who blogged for years about her son&apos;s constant health woes was convicted Monday of poisoning him to death by force-feeding heavy concentrations of sodium through his stomach tube. (March 3)
Video provided by AP

May 29, 2014 — Women who have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) -– the most common hormone disorder in women of reproductive age – are more likely to experience chronic low-grade inflammation during pregnancy ... full story

Sep. 10, 2013 — While irregular periods are common among teenage girls, an underlying hormonal disorder may be to blame if this problem persists. Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is an endocrine disorder that is ... full story

ScienceDaily features breaking news and videos about the latest discoveries in health, technology, the environment, and more -- from major news services and leading universities, scientific journals, and research organizations.